Jan 31 (Reuters) - Wall Street ascended on Thursday, with the S&P 500 wrapping up its biggest monthly increase since 2015 after strong earnings from Facebook Inc added to optimism after the Federal Reserve’s dovish remarks.

Facebook jumped 10.82 percent, its strongest daily rise since January 2016, after its quarterly profit topped expectations and showed that advertisers were still flocking to the social network even after a series of high-profile embarrassments.

General Electric Co soared 11.65 percent after the industrial conglomerate beat estimates for quarterly sales and cash flow and said it sees industrial revenue rising modestly in 2019.

Investors took heart from the Fed’s pledge on Wednesday that it would be patient in raising interest rates further this year, easing concerns about tightening financial conditions crimping economic growth.

“There was a severe lack of trust in the Fed a month ago, and that has been relieved,” said Craig Callahan, chief executive officer of Icon Advisors in Denver.

Better-than-expected results from many U.S. companies reporting in recent days are also fueling optimism on Wall Street, Callahan added.

The S&P 500 rose 7.9 percent in January, its best monthly performance since October 2015 and its best January since 1987.

Of the 210 S&P 500 companies that have reported fourth-quarter results, 71 percent have topped profit estimates, according to Refinitiv data.

Investors were awaiting the conclusion of the high-level talks between the United States and China, aimed at easing a six-month-old trade war that has battered financial markets.

China’s leader, Xi Jinping, told U.S. President Donald Trump in a letter that he hopes both sides will be able to meet each other halfway to reach a trade agreement before a March 1 deadline, Trump said.

The S&P 500 gained 0.86 percent to end at 2,704.1 points, while the Nasdaq Composite added 1.37 percent to 7,281.74.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.06 percent to end at 24,999.67, hurt by DowDuPont Inc.